ok... This will be my first bike and I need some advice. I went into my LBS and told the clerk what I was looking for and how much I can spend. He proceeded to show me three different bikes. One I liked a lot, it was an all aluminum frame with a shimano 105 groupset. The other I liked was an all carbon fiber frame, with very low end shimano groupset.
So! My question to you is... Is it better to go with a better frame and a lower end groupset, or to get the all aluminun frame with the 105 group set???
First, aluminum does not make a frame less worthy than carbon fiber. Frame material has nothing whatsoever to do with frame quality. Nothing. As for the frames in question, test ride them and see which one feels best and fits best, and then buy that frame. If both frames feel the same, fit the same, then I'd tend toward the one with Shimano 105.
Let me repeat: frame material is not what determines whether a frame is good, great, or [censored]. What's important in frame "quality" is design, construction, and QC. That said, it's getting harder and harder to find [censored] frames, unless you do your shopping at discount stores. The vast majority of frames/bikes sold at LBS are quality bits.
